Naku te rourou nau te rourou ka ora ai te iwi. With your basket and my basket the people will live.
The Lower Mataura Valley Community of Learning Kāhui Ako has Social Workers in School (SWIS) assigned to us through a contract held by Barnardos.
SWIS have the capacity to work with families supporting them in their time of need in order to grow and develop a strong family network that nurtures and supports the tamariki and rangatahi that attend our schools.
We have two social workers dedicated to this:
Cameron Hill: Cameron.Hill@barnardos.org.nz
My name is Cam. I am a Social Worker and Team Leader for Barnardos Southland.
I have moved to Southland from Northland where I was working in schools as a Social Worker.
My role involves overseeing and managing the Social Workers in Schools, and working alongside students, families, school, and community, to support and strive for students to achieve their dreams and goals.
I was originally from Taranaki, and have lived in various locations throughout the country, involved in a variety of different industries. Life has been one big adventure.
My interests include all types of fishing, whitebaiting and hunting which I have pursued since my early teens. Microlights and Gyros, growing a good vege garden and helping others achieve their dreams and goals.
Look forward to meeting and working with you.
IF LIFE IS GOING TO KICK YOU, LET IT KICK YOU FORWARD
Sunanda: Sunanda.John@barnardos.org.nz
Kia ora
My name is Sunanda John. I was born and grew up in Delhi, India. I speak English and Hindi language. I came to New Zealand with my whanau in 2004. I am employed as a Social Worker in Schools with Barnardos. In my role I work alongside schoolteachers, students and families to support students' academic and social successes.
I live in Invercargill, and I like travelling around the South Island. I enjoy my work and I like watching movies, doing craft work, drawing, painting, sketching, knitting, singing, dancing. I like gardening but I am not very good at it. I keep trying to nurture my plants and keep them alive. I love spending time with my family.
I am looking forward to working together with the school staff and students.
Ngā mihi
Sunanda
To make a referral:
Establish and follow your internal processes to ensure that the work associated with a referral is aligned and followed through by the right person e.g. teacher, SENCO.
Fill in the Barnardos Referral form.
Fill in the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).
Send to gavin.booth@barnados.org.nz or cameron.hill@barnardos.org.nz
Make sure you keep our Learning Support Coordinators in the loop.